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"I
like to think of mindfulness practice as a way of becoming wise and
being wise at the same time."

Sylvia Boorstein, Donít Just
Do Something, Sit There
Part 3

Cosmology Is Optional
(continued)

One famous Buddhist story describes a novice monk complaining to the
Buddha that he had not been given enough cosmological answers. (Imagine!
Complaining to the Buddha!) In the story, the Buddha agrees with
the novice but says that intellectual formulations are not what end
suffering. To illustrate this point, he gives a hypothetical example in
which a person shot with a poisoned arrow discusses the particulars of the
shooting before having the arrow removed. Removing the arrow, not
discussing the shooting, is the way to address the personís suffering. A
contemporary Buddha might use the example of a person who is injured in an
accident, then whisked away by paramedics to an emergency room. The
injured person does not stick around to discuss the particulars; the
police can do that. Directly addressing the suffering is clearly the
wisest response.

The Buddha taught that mindfulness is the direct antidote to suffering
because it leads to wisdom. I like to think of mindfulness practice as a
way of becoming wise and being wise at the same time.

The becoming wise part is a gradual process. By paying attention
calmly, in all situations, we begin to see clearly the truth of life
experience. We realize that pain and joy are both inevitable and that they
are also both temporary. We remember, more and more often, that struggling
causes suffering and that compassionate, considered responses make life
manageable. Sometimes we forget. The long-term goal of practice is to
never forget.

The being wise part of mindfulness practice happens as we act
now, in this very moment, on the way to never forgetting. Mindfulness
practice cultivates the habit of not getting angry with life because it
isnít happening in the way weíd like. Unpleasant situations call for
balanced responses. Anger is extra. Mindfulness practice also cultivates
the habit of enjoying pleasant experiences while they last without
lamenting their passing. Camera film ads notwithstanding, we cannot
capture the moment. Mindfulness practice means acting as if we were
already enlightened.